


Arms Outstretched

by 17826



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Aging, Angst, Canon Compliant, Drabble, Found Families, Friendship, Gen, How come Merle is the one I overidentify with when Carey is Right There, Mortality, POV Kravitz too for a lil bit, POV Merle, Up to ep 64
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-08
Updated: 2017-06-08
Packaged: 2018-11-11 08:20:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,671
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11144541
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/17826/pseuds/17826
Summary: Our heroes find themselves at an ending no one expected. Magnus forgets. Merle meets an old friend for the penultimate time. Taako works it out before he's even told.





	Arms Outstretched

Killian answered the door and Merle was no longer surprised by her receding hairline, or the deep crow's feet at her eyes. Months ago, when he had first shown up here, he had felt vertigo any time he looked at her, this being the first time he'd stayed in one place long enough to see his friends grow to be older than he was.

 

“Thanks for coming, Merle, this… I know it's early but I'm sure this will mean a lot to him.” Her gruff voice approximated a whisper and she gripped his arm for a moment with her diminished but still formidable strength. Her fingers were trembling and her eyes intense with emotion, and Merle felt even more detached.

 

“Ah, don't worry about it, I've always liked an early morning walk,” he heard himself reply with false cheer. “Good for the spirit.”

 

Killian gave a forced smile. “We’ve asked for the plot next to the director’s to be readied for him, so when he… you're his next of kin, so if you think he'd rather have Raven's Roost or nearer to here… well, it's up to you, Merle.”

 

She turned to walk down the corridor. _This is happening_ , he tried to tell himself as he followed her into the back room. _This is the best case scenario_.

 

Carey stood as he entered, gesturing to the spot she'd just occupied on the bed with a watery smile. Signs of aging were harder to spot on her, but the blue of her scales was closer to a lilacy grey now and she was never far from her cane or Killian's arm. He regretted not bringing any of the arthritis potion he'd been brewing as her joints cracked while helping him up onto the tall bed.

 

“We'll give you two a moment,” Carey said quickly as she and Killian backed out of the room. “Just shout if anything- if you need anything.”

  
  


_Well, shit._

  
  


“Hey, Magnus. You awake, buddy?”

 

“Merle?” Magnus’s voice was scratchy and tired, but just as strong as it had ever been. Merle let out a breath of selfish relief.

 

“Yeah, hi bud, it's me… how’re you doing? Team sweet flips hospitality doing you good?” He cringed at how casual he was being, and Magnus didn't answer. His eyes crinkled into a smile and his hands swept across the quilt slowly until they found Merle's and gripped tight.

 

“Is anyone else coming?”

 

“Yeah, Ango’s cancelling his classes for today, he'll be here soon, Junior’s on the train back from Neverwinter, No3113’s on her way. They're all coming, I got up at 5:45 for this shit.” His joke fell flat and Merle couldn't tell who was holding on tighter as he spoke.

 

“And Taako?”

 

Merle's heart dragged down in his chest; it felt like it weighed a tonne, like it was solid lead. “He's gone remember? With Lup?” Magnus looked up at him uncomprehendingly and Merle refused to admit they were tears pricking his eyes. “In the starjammer, with Davenport and Barry?”

 

“Oh yeah,” Magnus's cheeks coloured slightly with embarrassment, and he spoke quickly to cover up his lapse in memory. “But I mean, they're not back yet?”

 

“Nah, they'll be…” Merle looked down at Magnus's hopeful face, lined far deeper than it should be for a human of his years. He wished more than he ever had for his divine healing to return, though he knew it couldn't fix this. “Taako’s gunna be gone a while.”

 

“Okay. Well, I'm gonna get some sleep before everyone else shows up, wake me when they get here, yeah?” He shifted into his side as he spoke, but never let go of Merle's hand. His body curled into a loose semicircle around Merle's spot on the edge of the bed.

 

“Sure, I'll wait here.” Merle replied, and the numb detachment he felt started to give way to a vague panic.

 

“Cool, thanks Merle.” Magnus mumbled, and then there was silence for a few minutes as his breaths evened out and his grip on Merle's hand became slack. Merle listened to the pattern of deep inhalations and long exhalations, almost snores but not quite, and was transported back to the years and years of falling asleep next to this man, under the stars of so many different worlds. He took comfort in the regularity of the rise and fall of Magnus's chest under the thick blankets.

  
  


After a while, he felt a prickle on the back of his neck, and he looked up to find he was no longer alone in the room. He was only surprised for a second; really, he should have expected this.

 

“He’s not dead yet,” he said defensively, and Magnus snuffled slightly in his sleep as if to prove the point.

 

“No he's not,” Kravitz agreed solemnly from the opposite side of the bed, “we can both see that. But he doesn't have long left.”

 

Merle looked back down, tried to memorise every tiny detail of this moment. He clutched the warmth of Magnus's hand like he could keep him alive by sheer force of will, and all the times when he'd thanked Pan for Magnus's natural warmth when they made camp in cold forests came back to him. He cleared his throat, but his voice cracked when he spoke anyway. “How long?”

 

“I'll help his soul to its resting place soon enough.”

 

“Can you be any more specific than that?” Merle looked up but Kravitz just blinked slowly at him. “Sure, got it. Just a stupid old dwarf, why tell me anything?”

 

“I don't think you're stupid, Merle.” Kravitz's voice was placatory and deliberately neutral, obviously the tone you use when you're about to give some serious bad news. Merle resented it, but it was better than listening to Magnus's breathing getting shallower and shallower.

 

“Sure I am,” he choked out, letting the tears roll down his cheeks freely, not wanting to miss even a blink of this. “My fantasy GPA was only a 1.4.”

 

A hand came to rest on his shoulder, and Kravitz spoke with the same unbearable kindness that made Merle want to run away, to find a way to stop his younger self from ever having gone to Phandalin and finding this new family. “I don’t usually do this, but over the years, Merle, I think we’ve become friends. I can't do much, but this, this I can do for you and for Magnus.” His voice got impossibly kinder. “I'll be taking him in a minute or two, is there anything you'd like me to tell him?”

 

Merle couldn't breathe for his tears, and Magnus's chest was barely moving now.

 

“Tell him-” he choked off a sob, and pulled Magnus's hand up to press against his own chest, willing him to feel the heart beating there and just hold on, to just not die. Only a few more decades and they could go together. He couldn't think of a single thing to say; this was too huge, no words were big enough for this, he'd never been great with parting lines anyway.

 

“I don't mean to rush you…” Kravitz sounded truly apologetic. There was a moment's silence. Magnus breathed in, out, in, out, and then no more.

  
  


“I'm sorry, Merle, I have to go.” Kravitz's hand disappeared from his shoulder, and Merle saw him from the corner of his eye as his skin faded away to reveal his skeletal body, scythe raised high to draw an arcing slash through the air.

 

“You will tell Taako about this, right?” Merle was surprised at how clear his voice was, how whole it sounded.

 

“Of course,” Kravitz agreed, awkwardly hovering between being polite and continuing the conversation, and stepping through to finish his job. “I will give him your regards. Goodbye, Merle.”

 

“Bye Kravitz,” he replied, and as Kravitz started to turn away, he couldn't bear not trying. “Tell Magnus thanks.”

 

As the slit he'd created closed around him, Kravitz looked back at him and Merle caught a glimpse over his shoulder of the astral plane, of maybe a spirit floating behind him. He sat frozen for a second, staring at the blank space in the air where the rift had been, before looking down again because he knew if he didn't now, he never would. Magnus could still be sleeping, were it not for the empty stillness of the air around him, face slack against the pillows, a small patch of drool not yet dried. Merle squeezed his eyes shut against the flow of tears as he slumped forward, still cradling Magnus's hand to his chest. He would shout for Carey and Killian in a moment, but for now, the rest of the world didn't know, for now it was only him who knew that Magnus Burnsides was no more. And he wouldn't wish this knowledge on anyone else.

  
  


***

  
  


“Busy day at the office?” Taako said without turning around as Kravitz stepped into the kitchen, dropping his keys onto the side. He leaned heavily against the counter, loathe to break the good mood and yet unable to engage in the usual small talk today. Taako spun to face him, still unaware that anything was wrong, and gestured to his garish 'kiss the cook’ apron.

 

“I'm waiting…” he teased. When Kravitz failed to respond again, he looked up properly, and a crease of worry appeared between his eyebrows. “What's up my man? Everything okay?”

 

Kravitz cleared his throat, watching the worried microexpessions play out across Taako's features. Maybe it would be better to call Lup and Barry over and do it all in one? Taako looked seriously concerned now, as Kravitz hesitated, and he couldn't reasonably put it off any longer. He knew better than anybody that this was just the way things were, but he couldn't bring himself to say it outright. He'd never really considered it, but the simple passage of time was too cruel for words.

  
“Merle says hello,” he began, and Taako's eyes welled with tears. There was nothing more to say.

**Author's Note:**

> This is canon compliant up to the current episode at time of writing , which is chapter 5 of the stolen century . I'm working on the idea that after they all defeat the hunger , the ipre crew have the choice to go back to their two sun planet or stay in this reality , and Lucretia Merle and Magnus stay here but the others go home , which ( knowing how Griffin likes to pull on heartstrings ) is not entirely out of the realm of possibility imo . 
> 
> Also I mentioned Junior in this , who is my headcanon for Angus's kid , cause sweet child detective Ango would be like early fifties at this point . He named his kid after one of tres horny boys and so they refer to him as Junior to avoid confusion . I'll let u decide which one u think it is
> 
> I hope I didn't get the characterisation too off on these guys , it's my first time writing em , but concrit is always always welcome ^^ thank u for reading ! Kudos and comments feed my soul and fuel my heart x


End file.
